Permutation-valve.



J. R. BURKHART.

PERMUTATION VALVE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.l8,l91=6.

L%5,5M. Patented Feb. 5, 11918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET a.

if ff ATTORN EY J. R. BURKHART.

PERMUTATION VALVE.

APPLICATION FILED APR-18. I916.

Patented F@1b.'5,1191&

2 snEETs-snnr 2.

WITNESSES A ATTORNEY JAMES R. BURKHART, 0F DAVENPORT, IOWA.

rEBMUTATIoN-VALVE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented lFeb. 5, 191%..

Application filed April 18, 1916. Serial No. 92,061.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMns R. B'U'RKHAM', a citizen of the United States, residing at Davenport, in the county of Scott and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Permutation-Valves, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has relation to certain new and useful improvements in commutation valves and has for its primary object the provision of a commutation valve which will be of such construction that it may be employed in connection with practically any fluid conducting pipe.

The invention has for another object the provision of a commutation valve which will be of simple construction 'and operation, as well as highly eilicient in use, and in which the handles mounted for movement upon the indicating dials may be normally covered by a hinged member carrying a.

lamp, and means for automatically light ing the same upon movement of the hinge member to open position.

The invention has for a further object the provision of a commutation valve of the above-stated character in which a spring contact member may be moved into engagement with a second cont-act member to complete a circuit through the lamp, as the cover is moved to open position, thereby making it possible for the operator to see how to operate the con'nnutation valve.

The inventionhas for a still further object the provision of a commutation valve which will be of such construction as to per mit a number of combinations and which may be readily changed from one combination to another.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention resides in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts as hereinafter set forth in the specification, pointed out in the claim, and shown in the drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an elevation of my improved form of commutation valve partly in section;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section substantially on the plane of line 22of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the device with the cover removed;

Fig. 4: is an end elevation of the upper portion of the device with the cover in. closed position;

Fig. 5 is a detail elevation of the contact members and plunger supported in normal position by'the contact and plunger carrying block; and

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section through the parts shown in Fig. 5.

Referring more particularly to the drawings in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, 1 designates a plate through which a plurality of upper valve stem sections 2- are extended, said upper valve stem sections 2 having pointers 8 se cured upon their upper ends, as shown at 4 and provided with oppositely directed handle portions 5 formed with the body or central portion of said pointers. It will be readily seen that the upper stem sections 2 may be readily rotated by means of the pointers 3. It will also be seen by referring to Fig. 3 that suitable dial plates 6 are located upon the upper face of the plate 1 and may be in the form of separate plates or formed integral with the plate 1 as desired. The dial plates 6 are of circular form and provided with suitable characters 7 upon their upper faces and adjacent their edges. whereby the position of the pointers 3 will indicate the position of the separate valve plugs 8, which will later be fully described.

The lower end of each upper valve stem section. 2 is engaged in a sleeve 9 which is mounted upon a corresponding lower stem section. 10 and which is provided with a suitable set screw 11 for binding engagement with said upper valve stem section to lock the latter in adjusted position, with respect to the corresponding lower stem section 10. The purpose of this connection will presently be apparent.

Each lower stem section 10 has a valve plug 8, previously mentioned, mounted upon its lower end and engaged in the transverse bore 12 of a casting 13. While any number of castings 1.3 and valves 8 with upper and lower valve stem sections 2 and 10, respectively, may be provided, I have shown three castings 13 with a valve plug 8 and stem sections 2 and 10 for each casting. The central casting 13 has oppositely directed threaded extensions 14 which are threaded into suitable sockets 15 of the end castings 13. The opposite portions of the end castings 13 are turned and offset, as shown at 16, to receive the threaded ends of adjacent sections 17 of a suitable fluid conducting pipe. The central and end castings 13 are provided with communicating fluid passages 18 passing through the transverse bores 12 of said castings. The communicating passages 18 of the end castings 13 are continued through the oflset-portions 16 of said end castings 13 and enlarged .at their ends to correspond with the fluid passages of the fluid conducting pipe sections 17. Suitable removable clean-out plugs 19 are secured in the end castings 13 at the outer corners of the same, whereby the communicating passages 18 through the main portions of the end castings 13 and through the central casting 13, as well as the fluid passages 18 extended through the bent portions of the end castings 13 may be readily cleaned out by a suitable cleaning member, not shown.

Each valve plug 8 is provided with a transverse passage 20 which is offset from the longitudinal center of the valve plug and adapted to register with the communicating fluid passages 18 when in only one position, thereby making it necessary to give each valve plug 8 a complete revolution to again bring the fluid passage 20' into the position 'in which the central valve plug 8 is shown in Fig. 2. It will be understood that the connecting fluid passages 18 through the castings 13 are also located to one side of the longitudinal center of said castings 13,

intersecting thetransverse bores 12 of the castings 13 at a point to one side of the longitudinal center of said bores 12.

Beneatheach valve plug 8 is provided a metallic disk 8, which is engaged in the larger lower end of the bore 12 within which said plug is positioned.

A suitable valve stem guide member 22 is secured in the upper end of each bore 12 in a suitable manner as shown in Fig. 1 and provided with an annular flange 23 to prevent movement of said member 22 through said bore 12. A cap 24 is threaded upon each guide member 22 and a suitable packing, not shown, may be positioned in each cap 24.

It will be readily seen that after each upper valve stem section 2 has been properly adjusted with respect to the corresponding lower valve stem section 10, while the valve plugs 8 are in open position, as shown in Fig. 1, the operator may readily determine the combination, remembering that it is simply necessary to return the pointers 3 to the same position to open the valve plugs 8. When the pointers 3 are in any other position, the valve plugs 8 controlled by the same will be in closed position. The combination may be readily changed, however,

by simply readjiisting the position of one of .thepointers 3 w1th respect to the corresponding lower valve stem, section plug 8. -The plate l'is suitably supported in proper 10 and valve position above the castings 13 by the supporting standards 25 which are secured to enlarged side portions 6 of the end castings 13 by suitable securing members 27 while their upper ends may be secured to the plate 1 by any suitable securing screws or the like.

In order to inclose the pointers 3 and protect the same, I have provided a suitable cover 28 which is hinged to one edge of the plate 1, by suitable hinge members 29. The cover 28 carries a suitable depending spring bracket member 30 within which may be engaged the socket portion 31 of a conventional form of electric lamp or bulb 32, whereby the electric lamp or bulb 32 will be suspended above the pointers 3 when the cover 28 is in closed position. Suitable recesses 33 are provided in the edge of the plate 1 tov accommodate the electric wires 34 for the electric lamp or bulb 32, whereby the electric wires 34 may be extended from the electric lamp or bulb 32 to a battery or other source of electric energy, not shown.

The cover 28 carries a depending curved finger 35 which is engaged against the outer end 36 of a plunger 37. A recess 38 is also formed in the edge of the plate 1 adjacent the openings 33 to receive the finger 35 when the cover 28 is swung to open position. The plunger 37 is engaged in the contact and plunger supporting block 39 which is secured in a suitable manner to the under face of the plate 1. The plunger 37 reciprocates through the main portion of the block 39 and has a coil spring 40 engaged around its reduced body portion and within the longitudinal pocket 41 of the block 39, the working end of the plunger 37 extending through the end wall of the pocket 41 and into the transverse contact pocket 42 of said block 39. The free ends of the spaced spring contact members 43 extend into the contact pocket 42 and rest adjacent the opposite walls of the latter. The opposite ends of the spring contact members 43 are extended in opposite directions and secured, respectively, to the body of the block 39 by a terminal screw 44 and to the end portion 45 of the block 39 by the terminal screw 46. Suitable conducting wires 47 and 48 are connected with the terminal screws 44 and 46, respectively, and it will be understood that the wires 47 and 48 and the spring contact members 43 are positioned in the same circuit as the electric lamp or bulb 32. It will also be understood that the working end of the plunger 37 engages the spring contact member supported by the terminal screw 44 and as the cover 28 is swung to open position, the finger 35 will force the plunger 37 to move longitudinally through the block 39 against the action of the spring 40 and force the spring contact member with which it is engaged into engagement with the op posite spring contact member, thereby completing a circuit through the electric lamp or bulb 32. It will therefore be seen that as soon as the cover 28 is moved to open position, the electric lamp or bulb 32 will be antomatically lighted to illuminate the pointers 3 and dial plates 6. As the cover 28 is again closed upon the plate 1, the circuit will be automatically broken bv the spring L0 returning the plunger 87 to normal or unoperated position and the spring contact member 43 operated by the plunger 37 following the plunger 37 until said contact member 43 has returned to its normal position.

It will be apparent that even though the lid may be raised and the lamp or bulb auto matically lighted by an unauthorized party, such party could not operate the commutation valve to open all of the communicating passages through the castings 13 without having knowledge of the combination for which the valve is set.

While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood that minor changes in the details of construction, and arrangement of parts may be resorted to Within the scope of the appended claim without departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing any of the advantages of the same.

\Vhat is claimed is: A permutation valve, including a supporting plate, a hollow cover hingedly connected to said plate and forming a casing, dials mounted on said plate, supporting bars depending from said plate, a valve casing carried by the lower ends of said bars and equipped with a longitudinal bore, ported valve plugs rotatably mounted in said valve casing and intersecting said bore, valve stems carried by said plugs and extending upwardly through said plate and dials, said valve stems comprising upper and lower sections, independent sleeves fastened to the upper ends of said lower sections and adapted to rotatably receive the lower ends of said upper sections, fastening means carried by said sleeves to normally hold said upper sections stationary therein, combined handle and pointer means carried by the upper end of said valve stems to rotate with said valve and. cooperate with said dials to indicate the position of the valve with respect to the longitudinal bore of the casing.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES R. BURKHART. Witnesses P. MEYER, MERLE F. WELLS.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. '0. 

